Quips and Quotes: Flames beat Predators 3-0

The Calgary Flames beat the Nashville Predators by a 3-0 score on Tuesday night. Here are selected reactions from players and coaches following the game.

“I thought was started on time, I liked our first period. Obviously for me the five versus three penalty kill for the full two minutes, that was huge. It’s 2-0 at the time. Plus-two on the speciality teams, so I’m proud of both power play and penalty kill.” – Flames head coach Bill Peters on his team’s performance.

“I think me and Lindy kinda think the game the same way, and obviouslly Johnny has the speedy legs and likes to find you in open ice. Obviously I think we’ve still got a lot to improve. It’s nice to get a start and puck some pucks in the net.” – Flames forward Sean Monahan on the chemistry between the first line.

“Our power play was good tonight again. PK did a great job, especially that five on three. We were smart with the puck, getting in their zone, playing down low in their zone. Found a way to get a couple goals, take the lead, and just play the same way throughout the game.” – Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau on the keys to his team’s win.

I think Neal will be fine. Sure he isn’t starting this year (with a new team) like last year…but he doesn’t have too. Let him settle in and find the “real deal” groove. I’ll admit that his admiration of the Preds was a little over the top…but he’s just ankle deep here at the moment. When his comfort level …well levels… I believe that we will see the leader come out. Walt! How do you know that the game last night wasn’t won by a contributing factor of…Neal? Total inside look… he’ll score his 20+ goals (79 games to go), but that’s not the only reason he’s here. Relax buddy. Go back to putting down all the other players you don’t like…with your one dimensional view of hockey, and give the vet a chance ?

Just to put into perspective.
Last year we started the season with 3-0 loss to Edmonton.
Next game was a home game. We came back on the Jets & won 5-3. The 3rd game was on the road in Anaheim.
Flames shut them out 2-0.
Sound somewhat familiar?
After Anaheim we won 4-3 O.T vs the Kings. But after that game the flames started to slide…
I hope that this time they can not lay the goose eggs like last year & keep the momentum going in their favor.

Here’s putting it into perspective…this team is nothing like last year. Move on and cheer THIS team now. What’s with everybody just waiting for the tires to fall off? They are starting to mesh and quite quickly I might add. Let’s just enjoy…

I know what you were saying. I didn’t quite get the “perspective” analysis about a totally different team that is being put on the ice this year. For me…I can already see the differences in confidence and structure. To compare this to last year? Just seems a little pessimistic and short sighted. That’s all I was commenting on.

I just like to point out similarities to help temper expectations.
When we lost the first game I posted that it’s only 1 game.
It helps if I dont get too high on a win or too low on a loss.
I agree with you. This team WILL be different this year! ?

I didn’t mean to put your view in a negative sense there Flamesfan (cuz your name really makes sense ?). I’m just trying to help us focus away from that certain lost season. This team is different…by leaps and bounds. You are aloud to be excited!! Look at this team man!! Feel it!!
Remember a few years ago when GG started…how we all needed excuses…? To me it doesn’t feel the same. Why? Because the system isn’t all that different, to tell you the truth. from say…Hartley to GG…huge! GG to Peters? Not really. Just how to implement and “wow” what a difference in cast. We now have one of the better PP coaches in the game (Ward) and it’s already showing dividends. You are aloud to get excited. Thats all I’m saying…

Well he is over 28 and apparently to some people on here everyone over 28 is washed up and needs to be gotten rid of. Why haven’t the Penquins gotten rid of Crosby and Malkin so far, they are clearly old and too slow for the game now.

Lets put this in perspective. If Neal scores 25 goals this year it will be considered a good season. That still means he scores no goals in at least 57 games (depending on how many multi-goal games he has). Remember how a certain goal scorer for us named Iginla always had a slow start scoring goals.

I am not saying that it’s time to give up on Neal, but to suggest he is even in the same league as guys like Crosby, Malkin and Iginla is kind of crazy. On average, players begin declining in their late 20s/early 30s – it doesn’t mean they aren’t useful players. However, it does affect everyone. Crosby hasn’t hit 90 pts since 2013-2014, and Iginla’s numbers started dropping after his 30 year old season. Of course, when you are one of the best players in the game your reduced output is still going to be elite.

Which brings us to Neal. Neal has been relatively stable the last couple years, but nearly every metric for him – goals, points, shots, corsi – has dropped from where it was in his mid 20s. He is a good but not elite player, which means that his age-related decline will bring him into merely average or slightly below territory soon.

Of course he might buck this trend, but I have yet to see a compelling argument why Neal would be an exception. He is injured almost every year, he’s already viewed as a bit slow, and plays a physical game that can take its toll.

However, he is a career 12% shooter, and he shoots a lot, so I wouldn’t expect him to stay snakebitten forever.

I totally agree on the Neal analysts. What do we want from him? 20-25 goals with a few of them being important. We don’t need him to be a 60 point player…that’s not the point. Hmmm…that last game…that’s the point. Who knows the Preds more then Neal? Not many players. That is the contributing factor that nobody sees or talks about. He knows a lot of teams, and some of them intimately. This is a hockey warrior through and through. 2 Stanley Cup finals in a row?! WW should be ashamed for thinking “points” is what it’s all about….but that’s him. WW just looks at hockey on the surface. He doesn’t get what value a true 2-way player (like Backlund) is…cuz he doesn’t score 60-80 points. He doesn’t see how much Backlund made Tkachuk a better player up to today. This…is what creates a better team. Neal is the type of player that helps the team win…even when he isn’t scoring.

How about we give a shout out to Bill Peters so far. Already seeing so many differences from GG. Not only is he willing to dress the young guys he’ll put them out in key situations. He has tinkered with the bottom 3 lines each game instead of keeping them the same no matter what. Our puck pursuit after loose pucks has been so much more entertaining to watch so far. Feels like we finally have a system where maybe everyone doesn’t have a full handle on it yet but sure looks like they are buying in to it and liking it.

Good call. Peters is good at finding chemistry…cuz he looks for it. He’s not afraid of moving players around, even nightly. Most players won’t show up every single game and for various reasons. I like how he is recognizing situations and utilizing players in different key moments. He doesn’t seem to mind mistakes made…he just expects you to learn from them. So far I’m quite impressed with this coaching staff. Except maybe Smith finally disregarding what he’s being told by Sigalet and just playing his game.

I was happy to see Benny have a good game. He and Dube played well together. Sucks his goal was taken away, but his confidebce should be higher after this performance. Hopefully that line can get rewarded next game. Calgary appears to have three strong lines, though so far only one is cashing in on opportunities. Still, it is only a matter of time before those other lines get rewarded for their strong effort.

Question: Dube looked pretty good at center. Do you think Peters may try Janks on the wing with Ryan and Frolik? That would be an interesting look. Or have Ryan play wing but take the faceoffs?

I ripped Peters and the team for their lack of desire and the necessary will to win. They improved in Calgary and their win last night was superb. I owe the team and Peters an apology. This note is it.